Three weeks after the powerful tsunami “swallowed” the bustling airport in Sendai, United States airman are still trying to restore it. It is said that commercial flights will be resumed soon.
Hundreds of cars, many planes and even buildings were swept onto the runway at Sendai International Airport in Sendai, the capital city of Miyagi Prefecture in Japan when the massive waves engulfed the northeast coast of the country on March 11.
The airport’s terminal building was flooded; the car park and aircraft hangers were also put on fire. The passengers were trapped on the upper floors of the building for two days; airport’s people had to flee to the roof of an administrative building.
Sendai International Airport looks so devastated even after three weeks
With roads washed away or impassable, it has become so difficult for rescue activities
The tsunami covered the airport in more than three meters of water and much debris, including hundreds of cars, trees, houses and planes, which made the runway inaccessible.
The Sendai International Airport is now the destination for tons of blankets, food, water and other supplies for over 170,000 people who are still living in evacuation centers.
According to aerial surveys of the airport on March 13, when the massive tsunami hit Sendai
Thousands of liters of fuel have been sent to Sendai to power the machinery needed to clear the area
There is still no power or running water in the area. In the photo, US servicemen sleep on military cots
Although people are trying to recover the airport, it is still along way from where it was before the tsunami struck. The first commercial flight will be resumed soon. The airport will return to international and domestic travel in three weeks.
Sendai International Airport Three Weeks After Japan's Tsunami